It is a common sense to have 2 sets of rims for your car, especially considering that you have free towing service. If you damage your primary summer rims you can always mount your spare winter rims. It is convenient.

Plus, as it was told before - you will be tempted to take your car out on nice crisp winter days and it is better to be prepared.

 

I am not trying to fight, most probably I will order a winter set tomorrow (why not), but I have driving almost 20 years here in NY/NJ area. I just don't remember I ever had a winter tires installed. All of my car (suv, sedan, van, 4X) have all seasons tire. I currently have 4 cars and none of them has winter tires for Winter.
Or is it because of this is a Porsche? Anyway my driving pattern is smooth and cruising speed is around 70mph.
Oh, please state Yes or No to the question (if you have keep the summer tire in Winter or not) before your opinion. There is nothing right or wrong, all experience are appreciated.

 

it depends of your tires - but I left gas station one morning when it was about of 39 degrees and my rear PS2 completely lost traction. your other cars most likely have all-season tires on them, not ultra high performance summer tires, right?

 

haha, you are cool. That's why I have the heat steering wheel optioned.

 

The compound in the high performance stock tires (Michelins, Pirellis etc) are extremely sensitive to temperature. A few weeks ago (before I put my snows on) I took my 911 out for a spin. The roads were completely dry and the air temp was about 3 degrees Celsius. It was early in the morning with no traffic so I was having a bit of fun. At one point I stepped on the gas in second and it felt like my tires were made out of glass. Absolutley no warning before the car lost traction.

If you are going to drive your car in cold weather, do yourself a favour and get some winters (all-seasons are not much better than summers).

 

You're missing the point. The other cars you've had most likely had all season tires, and not high performance summer tires. It's not because it's a porsche but because it's a sports car and the car is fitted with perf. tires at the detriment of cold/snow perf.

The main question is do you daily drive the car? If yes, then you have to get snows. My car is not my DD so I keep the summers on all year and have plenty of opportunity to drive the car. Even in dry weather though, once you get below 40 degrees you lose a large portion of the tires grip.

Put another way, you'd much rather have a vehicle with snow tires and rear wheel drive than a AWD vehicle with all season/perf. tires in the snow/ice.

 

No, I dont keep them on for winter. Porsche recommends switching to winter tires below 45 F. I clearly feel an ice puck like transformation on the stock summer prefromance tires for the first couple of miles (and then the tires warm up and feel better) when the temp goes below 40 degrees. I guess if you have allseasons and don't plan to drive in Jersey snow you may not be thinking about a switch to dedicated winters but I would'nt still recommend that given the black ice. At very low temperatures (below 0°F/-18°C), black ice can form on roadways and salt's ineffectiveness at melting ice at these temperatures compounds the problem. I just called Damon at tirerack today and ordered my tire/wheel package along the the TPMS sensors. I clearly echo the thoughts/concerns raised by all other, more experienced P-car owners/drivers. My baby is just turning two weeks old and I am a first time owner of the P-car.

 

It is not a Porsche thing for me. My wife's Mercedes GL450 have snow tires, my previous Mercedes 06'E55 had snow tires and so does my Porsche. Winter weather and other idiots I share the road with are unpredictable. The last thing I need is my car being unpredictable and doesn't go where I steer to.

John

 

Yes not a Porsche thing. My wife's MINI and the household hauler our Toyota minivan also have dedicated winter wheels/tires.

 

Doh! Up in Detroit here, my car is in my heated garage, covered and sitting on Tire Cradles. See you next Spring!

 

Cayman S 2009-

I think that you are missing one basic fact. Your summer performance tires are nothing like all seasons tires. You stated that you never have had winter tires in NJ, but you probably have never had summer performance tires also. You WILL wreck your car driving with the current tires you have.

BTW, where are you from?

 

No, I never had summer performance tires before. I come from Hong Kong, Asia. Thank you for asking.

 

Welcome to the USA! You already know more than most American drivers- Dedicated snow tires will decrease stopping distance and improve control in winter weather better than all-season tires. "Black ice" sometimes is nothing more than an excuse a minivan or SUV driver blames for loss of control without snow tires. All of my cars have dedicated snows. My Cayenne GTS has a 19in Porsche winter set and is like a mountain goat. I can't wait to try the 18in Blizzaks on my GLK! My carrera S is my daily driver and is awesome in the snow. I save my summer tires and 19 in wheels from winter potholes. My 18in winter set has a comfortable ride, even well over 100 MPH in the dry. I have tremendous control in the snow. I agree, the Tire Rack is a great resource. Good luck with your first Porsche!

 

CaymanS2009: Send me an email at amargoy3@gmail.com and I will let you know the details of my order. My post count is low and I cannot reply for your PM.

 

My Pcar is not a DD so it sits in the garage on cold or snowy days; I get lots of warm days in the winter here in Norcal. I would buy winter tires if it was my DD.

This Saturday I took the car out early morning to go to breakfast with some local Pcar owners before a toy run, it was 37 degrees F so I took it quite carefully, I still ran into classic under steer around a small roundabout, no problem since I slowed down before entering and I expected it, slight unwind of the steering wheel got it back on track.

Later that day it warmed up and I had a little fun.

Snowed here today so I stayed home!